The first dinosaur-era crab completely preserved in amber: A completely preserved Cretaceous crab fossil was discovered from a piece of amber in Yunnan

In a study published in the journal Science Advances on October 20, an international collaborative research team introduced the first Cretaceous dinosaur-era crab preserved in amber

Real crabs, or short-tailed crabs, are an iconic group of crustaceans, with remarkable morphological diversity, species richness and economic importance

A group of scientists led by Xing Lida, a scholar at the China University of Geosciences, performed a micro-CT scan of the fossil, which is currently preserved in the Longyin Amber Museum in Yunnan, China

"The more we study fossils, the more we realize that this animal is special in many ways," Luque said

Aquatic animals use their gills to breathe in the water

The team’s phylogenetic study showed that more than 100 million years ago, the common ancestor of all modern crabs actually evolved ( carcinization , which really looks like the evolution of crabs)

But why are Cretaceous crabs preserved in amber? Cretapsara with a leg width of 5 mm may be a juvenile crab from freshwater to amphibian species

In order to commemorate the cloud and water spirit "Apsara" in the Cretaceous period and Southeast Asian mythology, the researchers chose " Cretapsara athanata " to name it